things I wish I had known.. hmm.. well, I knew a lot of stuff from reading on the internet before going in, so I felt pretty prepared already…
I would stress the no carbonation thing.. I know of people that drink it even after the surgery.. bad idea. and the no drinking 30 mins before and after eating.. they should be prepared for their mind to play games with themselves.. they dont do brain surgery when they do stomach surgery.. and you will see something and think you can eat that and you really cant.. then you'll get sick. or your brain will tell you that you are still huge after you've lost weight and you're not so huge anymore.. it affects the self esteem..
and theres the sugar issue.. i know a lot of people don't even try sugar after surgery because of the fear of 'dumping'.. but some of us do try it and discover that it doesn't effect us like that.. which is bad because now we know we can eat sugar and not hurt (yes, I'm one of those) take your vitamins!! cant be stressed enough. im bad about it.. and im low in iron and b12.
and after we lose the weight, we still have to continue with our 'diet' or lifestyle.. we cant just go back to how we used to eat.. we can gain the weight back. i think people tend to forget that after time.
tell them to try a bunch of different protein drinks.. they don't all taste the same. and even if they hate one, try it again after surgery.. your tastes change. I have only found one type i like, and i cant stand the kind my MIL likes.. so it varies with everyone. protein protein protein. need lots of it daily!
the first 6 months after surgery are your 'honeymoon period'.. you lose the weight the fastest.. after that it slows down some. so, during those 6 months, eat the way you should, and do some form of exercise.. even if its just going for walks around the block.
I typed the 6 month date out, printed it, and taped it to the wall in front of my treadmill. I also taped up pics of outfits/styles in magazines I wanted to be able to wear. It gave me a little bit of incentive. ;)
